Chondrus ocellatus

Thallus cartilaginous, bushy, in tufts, 5-10(-20) cm high, dark purplish-red with lighter-colored (reddish-brown) apices, bleaching to greenish-yellow. Branching repeatedly (2-7 times) dichotomous or subdichotomous with narrow to wide axils. Short terete stipe gives rise to erect blades. The blades compressed at the base and flattened above, 2.0-7.0(-35) mm broad, linear-cuneate, with rounded, ligulate or furcate apices. Margins slightly thickened, entire or with various proliferations (simple or forked, ligulate or cuneate). Attachment by discoid holdfast, to 15 mm in diam. Tetrasporangia oval, cruciate, 25-33×35-47 mm, develop in tetrasporangial sori (visible as red spots or patches on the surface) scattered over the thallus. Cystocarps round or axially elongated and ocellated (to 1.0×1.5 mm), prominent on one side and concave on the other, commonly in the upper portion and sometimes lower down of the thallus. Growing on rocks in the lower intertidal.

Countries of the Asia-Pacific Region: China, Korea, Japan.